A Literary Activist’s Guide to the PEN America Digital Archive
I find archives strangely comforting…they are reminders of what’s recurred and changed, reminders that others were grappling similarly in the past and theirs are the shoulders we stand on. More
A Poet’s Return: Pavel Šrut’s Worm-Eaten Light
"For 10 years after Worm-Eaten Light was banned, Pavel couldn’t write poetry even if he’d wanted to because it had lost its meaning in new reality of normalization. Through… More
Banned Books Week: Book Challenges May Deprive Students of Critical Life Lessons
Censorship in schools and libraries is more prevalent than you think, says new report NEW YORK—A persistent pattern of attempts to remove certain books from public schools and libraries, combined… More
Outsider Nonfiction
"I did not set out to write a definitive transgender book. I wrote and photographed six individuals, ages 16 to 22, who fall under the transgender umbrella. This left… More
The Color Purple and the Toppling of American Gods
"In The Color Purple lies the truth, in its pages lie glorious, flammable ideas: how many fires could be lit with the simple, indomitable truth that a Black girl… More
An Excerpt from ‘This One Summer’
Jillian and Mariko Tamaki’s "This One Summer" is a Caldecott Honor (and multiple award-winning) graphic novel that follows two young friends over a vacation’s “tween wakening.” The book captures… More
PEN America report analyzes challenges for diverse youth literature
PEN America's report on challenges facing diversity in children's and young adult literature is published in time for Banned Books Week. More
Perumal Murugan, a Literary Suicide
"The trend in India of writers being harassed and stigmatized for their work is troubling. It is imperative that writers from both inside and outside India support these voices,… More
Don’t Pity the Subject Being Smashed, Rage at the Object Doing the Smashing
"That is why The Bluest Eye is dangerous and always situated on a banned books list. It exposes the violence that besets the human condition as a result of… More